The PS2 original of Final Fantasy X is my all-time favourite game. This remaster is lovingly made, with redrawn textures across the board to make the graphics sparkle on modern displays. One element that doesn't fare quite as well is the music, which was almost completely redone. Some pieces are better than the original compositions, whilst others are not. On the PS4 version you can change between the original and remastered music, but not so here.

As for the game itself, it holds up brilliantly. This is the first Final Fantasy game to take on overtly Japanese themes in its setting. The southern, tropical portion of Spira is based on Okinawa, and as such instantly feels different to the medieval or futuristic settings of previous games in the series. Spira is a beautiful and diverse land with many interesting places to visit.

The story is one of the strongest elements of the game. Primarily a commentary on how religion has been used as a means of societal control, FFX sees summoner Yuna and her guardians engage on a pilgrimage to stop the menace known as Sin and bring temporary peace to Spira. The story has a lot of forward momentum - you're always moving forward and something is always happening. It's also tinged with sadness; Spira is a land trapped in a never-ending cycle of death. The story unfolds at a nice pace, and as Tidus, like the player, is new to the world, things are slowly explained so that terms and lore never become confusing or overwhelming. The cast is one of my favourites in an RPG. It's rare that I'll love every party character in an RPG, but here they are all likeable and strong in their own way.

The battle system is another highlight of the game. Abandoning the ATB system used from FFIV - IX, in X it is purely turn-based. However, you can switch characters in and out of battle on the fly (it's amazing, seriously) bringing a new tactical element to the game, and can also see the turn-order, which helps to plan which strategy to use. Another new element is that summons - known here as Aeons - are fully player-controlled. Once summoned by Yuna, they replace the regular characters in battle. They can take a lot of damage and also use some rather nifty attacks, helping out in tougher boss battles.

In X, characters do not level up, instead gaining points in battle that can then be used to purchase skills and attributes on a massive grid. This "Sphere Grid" is extremely addictive to use and gives the player considerably more flexibility in shaping the characters.

This was the first Final Fantasy game to have voice acting. Unfortunately, to match the American vocal track with the mouth movements of the in-game characters - which were timed with the original Japanese and were not redone for the Western localisation - voices had to frequently be either sped up or slowed down. This leads to many lines sounding a little unnatural.

Anyway, to summarize, the game is incredible, is still brilliant to play, and has a great story, wonderful characters and a fun battle system.

Final Fantasy XIII - IMPORTANT

I won't deny that this is a divisive game, however, here's my pitch for why I think it is important.

First off, it's incredibly beautiful - truly stunning on the PS3 in fact - and the score is absolutely sublime. Like other Final Fantasy games, it absolutely nails it in the presentation department.

Lightning is my favourite Final Fantasy protagonist. Many have complained that she's "cold", but she's carrying the weight of the world on her shoulders, her parents are dead and she's supporting her younger sister Serah, who by the way turns to a block of crystal at the beginning of the game. Is she supposed to be jolly? She's incredibly strong and naturally used to working alone, so struggles being part of a team.
Other characters vary; I love Fang and Sash; found Vanille highly annoying until a story revelation later on; and thought that Snow was a jerk. Hope is often singled out for criticism, but he's a teenage boy who watched his mother die in front of him. He's not going to be Mr. Jolly, is he?

As with any RPG, the battle system can make or break the game. Thankfully here tbe battle system is a real highlight. It's a very fast-paced take on the ATB system of earlier Final Fantasy titles. So fast, in fact, that you can choose to have commands automatically selected by the AI. This lead to complaints that the game played itself (despite the fact that the auto attacks can be turned off), which belies the strategy at the heart of the system. Characters have a number of "battle roles", including Commando (basically a fighter who specialises in physical attack), Ravager (a black mage) and Saboteur (they cast debuffs and status ailments), among others. The player can choose to fix these roles on decks and then switch between decks in battle. This makes battles very strategic - particularly the extremely tough hunts that feature later in the game. It works brilliantly in game and is a wonderfully fresh take on the ATB system.

The game had a notoriously difficult development cycle, as it was made alongside the Crystal Tools engine. Benchmarks and requirements kept changing as it was also being used for Versus XIII and Final Fantasy XIV. Not to mention the PS3 itself was incredibly difficult to work with.
The difficulties the designers of XIII faced led to several compromises being made. Much of the game completely eschews exploration to the extent that early portions see you move along essentially straight corridors. Although the freedom of earlier games was largely an illusion - as there was always a fixed player trajectory - in XIII it is very rigid. However, in turn, the story is laser focused and sees the party continuously moving forward - they're fugitives, and on the run for their lives. Everything feeds into the story, which on the whole is enjoyable and thoughtful, although the villain is a little weak.
Whilst Final Fantasy X also saw the player move on a literally fixed path, each area had different routes to explore and you could also visit previous areas.
I wasn't personally bothered by XIII's design decision, but it did irritate many.
The game does open up much later, once you get to an area known as Gran Pulse. This features a wide open expanse that you can explore and complete optional hunts, as well as visit other areas off of it. It terms of the story and XIII's mythology, Pulse represents freedom compared to the rigidity of Cocoon police-state.

On the whole, yes it's divisive, but I feel that it's aesthetic beauty, the strength of the battle system, and a strong protagonist make this an important game that is rewarding experience if given the chance.

Final Fantasy XIII-2 - IMPORTANT

The reception for this was more negative than XIII, perhaps in response to backlash over XIII, which is a shame because in many ways XIII-2 was an improvement on its predecessor. For instance, areas are larger and far more open, with different routes and paths to explore. In general everything feels more dynamic. You can also revisit areas, and even choose which order to do things (to a degree). The game uses many of the unused assets and areas from XIII, so this sped up the development. Like XIII it's beautiful to look at, and the score is incredible.

The battle system, whilst largely the same as XIII, sees some tweaks, notably with the addition of monster companions. You can capture monsters and use them as party members, which is rather fun. My personal favourite was my behemoth.

This time round the party is small - only comprising Lightning's sister Serah and newcomer Noel, a time-traveller from the bleak, apocalyptic future. Both are likeable and a strong bond grows between them. The smaller party makes the game feel more intimate. With a time-travelling storyline things can get a touch confusing by the end, but it largely works.

Genji: Days of the Blade Giant enemy crab! Surely this has some importance for that alone? 😂 I've not played it, but the critical reception seemed mixed.

POINTLESS
Fast and Furious Showdown
Fist of the North Star: Ken's Rage 2
G1 Jockey
Game of Thrones
Generator Rex: Agent of Providence

I considered moving Final Fantasy XIII down to EXISTING but @mookysam made a very good argument for keeping it in IMPORTANT.
If there's any you want to debate on moving then let us all know, if not then say LOCK.

It is difficult to argue against the value of this collection, which includes two full games (KH1 and Re:Chain of Memories) and a movie based on the cutscenes from the DS exclusives 358/2 Days. Square-Enix went the extra mile with this remaster. In KH1 textures are redrawn across the board, character models replaced with newer versions (from Dream Drop Distance) and music reochestrated. It looks lovely and sharp and sounds absolutely beautiful, too. In addition to looking great, it also runs incredibly smoothly. As with many HD collections, this is also the first time many younger gamers will have played the games, so originally being PS2 titles shouldn't count against it.

The gameplay in 1 is dated in many ways - platforming is particularly wonky - but the game has such charm to it that it remains utterly delightful to play through. The massive cast of Disney characters, many of which are voiced by the original actors, really enhance the game from a presentational standpoint. The story is simple by Kingdom Hearts standards and works very nicely. The blend of Disney and Final Fantasy is masterfully done.

For European gamers this was the first time we got the PS2 remake of Chain of Memories, which was originally a Game Boy Advance title. It's a wonderful and underrated gem with a brilliant, fast-paced and fun card-based battle system. Many people have problems with it because they don't use combos. Seriously, use combos. Most locations are from the first game, but between the story and excellent battle system, this manages to feel a fresh and important entry in the series.

After Sora's campaign, there's a second, shorter one where you play as Riku. It's completely different to Sora's in terms of story, and Riku's battle style and moves are different too. Its story is quite essential to the wider Kingdom Hearts plot.

In all, 1.5 is nothing less than VERY IMPORTANT.

Kingdom Hearts 2.5 had less work done on it than 1.5. Kingdom Hearts 2 was already a great looking game (one of its generation's finest), and so outside of the upscale, the visuals remain the same as the original. The music in 2 has been completely reorchestrated and like 1.5 before it, sounds beautiful. The game runs smoothly, though there are some loading issues when changing Sora's form - it takes several seconds to load in, which is rather annoying. It's by no means a game-breaker, but it does make this less polished than 1.5's remasters.

For many gamers Kingdom Hearts 2 was already the best game in the series. Everything ups the ante from 1 - the worlds are bigger and better designed, there are more of them and combat is deeper and more fluid. The story is also more intricate; I enjoyed the nuance and (at that stage) moral ambiguity of the villains.

This is the first time Western gamers got the "Final Mix" versions of 2 and Birth by Sleep. In 2, the little story additions and new cutscenes improve the flow of the story and also gives more context to certain plot elements, particularly the motives of the villain. Between this and the gameplay tweaks and new bosses, 2 Final Mix is a better game than the original PS2 version.

Birth by Sleep was originally released late in the PSP's lifespan and so many gamers missed it. This version holds up nicely, although its PSP origins are evident - locations are smaller, and the visuals, while remaining colourful and attractive, are simpler than in the other games. There are three inter-connected campaigns, each enjoyable to play through. The Final Mix version also has new bosses and story links to 2, as well as an entirely new gameplay episode at the end that leads directly into the strangely named 0.2 episode in the PS4's 2.8 collection.

Birth by Sleep has one of the best combat systems in the series and was a huge influence on 3. It's fast and extremely fluid, and has the added benefit of being able to dodge and block from the outset. The real meat is in the "combat styles", where using certain moves, be they spells or physical attacks, will trigger a form change whereby your character temporarily has a new attack style and combo finisher. You can also "link" with other characters in lieu of having actual party companions, which gives you temporary access to other abilities and finishers.
The final piece of the puzzle is the system used to gain abilities. Abilities are linked to battles moves (spells/attacks), which are unlocked as those moves are used. In turn you can fuse moves to gain new spells, attacks and even more abilities.

Birth by Sleep has a nice selection of Disney world's, chosen so that the game very much feels like "the beginning" of the saga. As with other titles, original actors are used where possible.

Sorry, I've been a bit AWOL over the last few days. And I don't think I'm going to add much here either, because I haven't played a single game from this list.

Here's what I know though:

Jurassic Park is considered one of the weaker Telltale offerings, in fact I'd forgotten it existed until now. However, I've heard good-ish things about the story, which runs parallel to the events of the first film and concerns the contacts who Denis Nedry was supposed to meet at the docks on Isla Nublar, before he got waylaid by a spitty dilophosaurus. The puzzles and the general gameplay let it down, I think. The brainteasers apparently were nothing of the sort, while the moment-to-moment gameplay consisted of the worst of Telltale, and was unexciting.

Despite being a huge Katamari fan, I never got around to Katamari Forever, partly because it consists of rehashed stages from earlier games (only three new levels out of the 34 featured, cheers Wikipedia). The idea is that The King of All Cosmos has amnesia, so you have to remind him of these stages by playing them again, or something. The other half of the game is then set in the present. I'm going to quote directly from Wiki here, because I can't think of a way to re-word what follows:

"RoboKing, a robotic version of the King of All Cosmos created by the Prince and his cousins, goes on a rampage and destroys all the stars in the sky, which, unlike the King, he feels extremely remorseful for"

This will have series veterans sagely nodding their heads, while everyone else has already left the room. So basically it's Katamari - it's glorious, but at the end of the day it's more of the same.

Existing for both games, I reckon, with Katamari being higher in the category.

I've only played LBP, and I'd say the first one is VERY IMPORTANT. No idea if the second one improved on it a lot, but I've heard quite often that the third game wasn't that good; so I'd say LBP 3 is just IMPORTANT or maybe EXISTING.